Rs 26,345 crore for agriculture, irrigation in Maharashtra

Maharashtra has allocated Rs 26,345.29 crore for the state’s farm sector in this year’s Budget. Work on all the major projects under agriculture and irrigation, which were launched in last three years, will continue along with new plans to channalise the farm produce for the benefit of farmers, the government said. The state Budget has accorded high priority to the agriculture and irrigation sector. Of the total Rs 26,345.29 crore, allocation for the agriculture sector is Rs 18,112.17 crore and irrigation (water resources) Rs 8,233.12 crore.

The flagship project “jalyukta shivar”, which has helped to make 11,454 drought-hit villages water-sufficient, got higher priority in the Budget. Special provision of Rs 1,500 crore has been made with a target to make 5,000 villages drought-free by the end of the year. It has been adequately backed with “farm ponds on demand”, which has caught the imagination of farmers, specially in small and marginal districts of Vidarbha and Marathawada region.